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Dan J.

Here in Jackson my ASO is having a short "walk" (just a few blocks) downtown & then they are having their annual "Christmas Party" for the clients. Everything they do is low key. The people that "run the show" don't like to bring too much attention to themselves or the group. they live in fear that the community will backlash at us for being HIV +. What a shame.

Do you have any plans for Dec 1st?

All of the members of this forum will be in my thoughts that day... As you are everyday.

I will be riding my bicycle from Golden Gate Park to Sausalito and then to Mill Valley and back with my cycling group "Positive Pedalers". We will all ride wearing red and there will be simultaneous rides all over the country ( NY, Philly, L.A etc....). We will have media coverage and there will be a memorial at Golden Gate's AIDS memorial gardens (the same place we had our memorial at AMG).I will have a flag on my bike with the names of all the loved ones we have lost to AIDS. If you would like to have a name of someone you want to remember, please let me know I will be honored to add it their names to my flag and to the list of names we will read out loud during the memorial.You will all be with me in spirit as I ride out Saturday morning.

Rich(who knows he will need a box of tissues with him that day)

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POSITIVE PEDALERS... We are a group of people living with HIV/AIDS, eliminating stigma through our positive public example.

Well recently I mailed all my family and friends a red ribbon and a bumper sticker that has a red ribbon on it that reads

Aids Awareness

EducationCompassionPrevention

I've ask them to wear the ribbon to bring awareness and show support for those that are infected /affected by HIV/AIDS and to display the bumper sticker on their car/trucks.No plans yet, trying to find something to get into that day. So if you know of any Atlanta events let me know; ThanksPaulette

I will be riding my bicycle from Golden Gate Park to Sausalito and then to Mill Valley and back with my cycling group "Positive Pedalers". We will all ride wearing red and there will be simultaneous rides all over the country ( NY, Philly, L.A etc....). We will have media coverage and there will be a memorial at Golden Gate's AIDS memorial gardens (the same place we had our memorial at AMG).I will have a flag on my bike with the names of all the loved ones we have lost to AIDS. If you would like to have a name of someone you want to remember, please let me know I will be honored to add it their names to my flag and to the list of names we will read out loud during the memorial.You will all be with me in spirit as I ride out Saturday morning.

Rich(who knows he will need a box of tissues with him that day)

Thanks for taking us along; wishing you the best on your journey.Paulette

Some friends come around to my place, everybody brings food and booze and eventually, we all get stuffed and, hopefully, happy. Some of them are poz too, and it's been a rule that we don't discuss our illnesses that day. Later on, we'll go out to a charity disco party. Fortunately, it's a Saturday.

As for WAD action, there's a booth of the local AIDS support group in the city center to raise awareness. They collect money, give out flyers and free condoms, and sell red ribbons, mulled wine and the annual edition of the AIDS bear. There's a new bear design every year, and in 2007 it's gonna be the rap bear (see below). As you can imagine, I have already a collection of these bears since I've gotten one as birthday present for quite a few years.

I will be spending it how I do every year, crying. I buried my 198th friend three months ago and have lost one friend in each of the past five years. While I admire those who can actively participate in a greater purpose, I just let the tears flow or my heart would surely burst.

You are right Thunter, I chose the wrong word, because to me there is no greater purpose on AIDS Day than to mourn and honor my friends and loved ones. Thank you for the beautiful sentiment, you really made my day.

Maybe this just a passing mood on my part, but I don't think so. Sometimes, and this year is one of those times, I get really angry about World AIDS Day. Because it just seems to me as if it's an opportunity for politicians, media and many others to pay some lip service to the epidemic and then go back pretty much to business as usual after the services, the promises, the remembrances.

What I would like is 364 World AIDS Days and 1 day No attention to AIDS DAY.

I didn't promise I would be rational about this.

I don't want to cry right now and I don't want to mourn at this moment.

How are we supposed to take anything seriously that any public official says about AIDS or remembrance when we know that AIDS still carries a huge stigma, one that is baldly reflected in the onerous restrictions on travel into the US by foreigners. I mean, GET REAL! For starters, I'll believe something is changing for the better when those restrictions are lifted without any reservations.

And when ADAP is sufficiently funded to make waiting lists a thing of the past. And there are monies for realistic prevention programs that result in a drop in new infections. Those are what I would call events worthy of a real WORLD AIDS commemoration. And those kinds of actions would be meaningful ways of honoring those we have lost in the epidemic. And continue to lose.

Feel free to ask anyone WHAT ARE YOU DOING ABOUT AIDS THE REST OF THE YEAR is how I see it.

ok so here's my this year's wad rundown:wed - article featuring yours truly in regional paper (i have to confess under a fake name because i quite like my house having windows & also it's a disciplinary offense for me to talk to the papers) having a bit of a moan about stigma and the hypocrisy of [negative] peoplefri - 'wear red to work day' awareness & fundraising + info & awareness compiled by moi on bbc public info screen in my citysat - world aids day vigil (which i am on the steering group of) + info & awareness compiled by moi on bbc public info screen in my city + article on US travel ban featuring your very own englishgirl and emma (gemini20) on times online travel section, plus in the morning im gonna turn up to a session my local mp is doing and berate him for ignoring my communications re the travel ban

we've decided one our steering group aims for the next few years is to raise enough for a memorial of some form in our city, so fingers crossed on that one...

"I'm not keen on the idea of the afterlife - not without knowing who else will be there and what the entertainment will be. Personally I'd rather just take a rest." Oscar Berger, PWA: Looking AIDS in the Face, 1996. RIP.

Tomorrow (friday) I'm doing an interview on the local radio. We talked about postponing it because I'm still a little wobbly after my recent break-up, but we came to a rather interesting compromise.

My argument for postponing was "AIDS isn't just for December first, ya know". Kinda like the "a puppy isn't just for Christmas" thingy. His argument for NOT postponing was "but like it or not, WAD is NOW".

So here's the compromise. I'll do the interview tomorrow and he'll have me back on the show in six months time. I'm gonna hold him to that too.

The interview will start around 11am my time, that's 6am on the East coast, USA. You can listen to it live, or you can listen to it afterwards. Here's the link:

If you want to listen to it live, you can go to the same link and look for the "listen AM" and "listen FM" buttons near the top right-hand side of the page. I'm not entirely sure, but I think you want FM.

Now I've got to get my ass in bed or I'll be talking gobbledegook tomorrow. I've had bad brainfog all day (took me ages to drag the word "compromise" out of my head) and I hope I'm not like that tomorrow too. Otherwise, you'll hear me saying "thingy" and "whatsis" loads of times and I probably won't get asked back next summer.

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

We've honestly never celebrated - never knew there was such a thing, actually. We used to have a red ribbon on our car, but thought that the red was taken over by MADD so we took it off. However, I REALLY want one of those bears. If there's a link to buy one, please post it or IM me. But, for this year we already had plans to decorate for Christmas. We'll keep our plans and say a prayer for all of our new friends.

Going to a World Aids Day BBQ at the local Positive Living Centre here in Adelaide, South Australia.. taking the negative partner, and HOPEFULLY his two kids :-D

J

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"The Bible contains 6 admonishments to homosexuals and 362 admonishments to heterosexuals. That doesn`t mean that God doesn`t love heterosexuals. It`s just that they need more supervision." -- Lynn Lavne

Like Joe, I cry a lot on Dec 1st. It's a tough one for me. We've lost so many and every day, more and more people become positive.

I think this is a good opportunity for me to post the prayer that Jan and I handed out on our memorial cards at AMG 06 in Montreal:

Dear Father/Mother God,

Behold, visit and relieve all persons with HIV/AIDS; give the power of healing to those who remember andcare for them and to those who seek a cure; strengthen the weak,encourage those who fear, and comfort those who mourn,that our sickness may be turned into healthand our sorrow into joy.Use us as ambassadors of hope and healing,and assist us daily as we walkfaithful in our calling.Unite us in love, and let usalways remain connected to the power of....THE CIRCLE OF LIGHT

and so it is......

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"Remember my sentimental friend that a heart is not judged by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others." - The Wizard of Oz

Nah, thats where they held the picnic in the park this year (cough) allegedly it was well attended!

J

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"The Bible contains 6 admonishments to homosexuals and 362 admonishments to heterosexuals. That doesn`t mean that God doesn`t love heterosexuals. It`s just that they need more supervision." -- Lynn Lavne

Never went to veale, much prefer to go to 431.. unlimited hot showers! (I finished harry potter and the order of the phoenix there.. sad eh?)

J

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"The Bible contains 6 admonishments to homosexuals and 362 admonishments to heterosexuals. That doesn`t mean that God doesn`t love heterosexuals. It`s just that they need more supervision." -- Lynn Lavne

For World Aids Day, I intend on hanging around the park across the road from about 9pm onwards to see if I can't catch me some stray meat leaving the Summer Gay Day Out, or whatever it is called. How sad (or exciting) is that.

I'm ashamed to say I forgot it was Worlds Aids day Dec 1st. Now that I know I will donate some money to an Aids charity. I will also remember to give thanks for all those people who have died before me that went through so many medical trials to make it possible for me to have HIV medications that work for me now.

Here in Sonoma County we have an annual event called "Dining Out for Life" There is usually about 40-50 restaurants which donate about 10% of the dinner and drink checks to Food for Thought, Sonoma Counties AIDS Food Bank.

Over the weekend (Saturday and Sunday) there will be a presentation of the AIDS Quilt Project at the Guerneville Veterans Hall followed by cocktails at Rainbow Cattle Company in Guerneville.

I ran into my friend Ginger in the clinic waiting room the other day. Ginger founded an HIV Support for Heterosexual people living with HIV. She spoke of a presentation at Sonoma State University by her group with the founder of the Quilt Project as keynote speaker.

Somewhere in one of my pockets is a list of events but can not find at the moment. I plan on having dinner at one of the restaurants sponsoring Dining Out for Life, seeing the Quilt and having a drink. Have the best dayMichael

I'm going to sell a quarter pound of hash to a friend from Vancouver sometime in the early afternoon then meet up with some friends for dinner and drinks before heading to the Tool concert where I have floor seats.

They are doing a one hour ceremony at 4:00 p.m. today which angers me somewhat. That they would do it on the day before World Aids Day and at a time when most people will still be in work is very telling of how much HIV and AIDS is still being hidden in my new home.

It's a different day and age....as Andy stated above, just another "photo op" for officials, etc.

I remember one especially moving W.A.D. event back in the early 90's in Atlanta...I think it had something to do with "a day without Art" (not sure on that) but they had this huge projector and were projecting images of PWA's and their lives on the outside of the High Museum. I remember standing out in the cold, crying and looking at those images on that stark white buildling. This was pre-protease days, and AIDS was definitely still a death sentence.

On Dec. 1st, I will be remembering all those we have lost, and the loss of many of my good friends, including James and Christine from AIDSmeds.

Alan

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"Remember my sentimental friend that a heart is not judged by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others." - The Wizard of Oz

I JUST CAME OUT AT WORKI'm still not sure how people will react but honestly I don't care! All I care is that they (my co workers) can't say they don't know anyone who has HIV...and that hopefully it will inspire at least one person to join me in the fight against HIV/AIDS.So how did I do it...I am wearing red and a T-SHIRT that reads CHANGE THE COURSE OF THE EPIDEMIC. I made red ribbons for the entire office and pinned it on everyone at work. Than I sent a blast email about my bike ride tomorrow morning and the letter begins with " Do you know anyone who has been affected by HIV/AIDS? The answer is YES YOU DO...YOU KNOW ME!!!! "...

Rich(who is an emotional wreck right now)

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POSITIVE PEDALERS... We are a group of people living with HIV/AIDS, eliminating stigma through our positive public example.

I JUST CAME OUT AT WORKI'm still not sure how people will react but honestly I don't care! All I care is that they (my co workers) can't say they don't know anyone who has HIV...and that hopefully it will inspire at least one person to join me in the fight against HIV/AIDS.So how did I do it...I am wearing red and a T-SHIRT that reads CHANGE THE COURSE OF THE EPIDEMIC. I made red ribbons for the entire office and pinned it on everyone at work. Than I sent a blast email about my bike ride tomorrow morning and the letter begins with " Do you know anyone who has been affected by HIV/AIDS? The answer is YES YOU DO...YOU KNOW ME!!!! "...

Rich(who is an emotional wreck right now)

Rich,

That is absolutely fantastic! I love what you wrote in the email and I hope you have nothing but positive, supportive reactions. Good luck - and let us know how it goes.

Good luck with the bike ride tomorrow as well. I hope the weather is just perfect for you.

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

I JUST CAME OUT AT WORKI'm still not sure how people will react but honestly I don't care! All I care is that they (my co workers) can't say they don't know anyone who has HIV...and that hopefully it will inspire at least one person to join me in the fight against HIV/AIDS.So how did I do it...I am wearing red and a T-SHIRT that reads CHANGE THE COURSE OF THE EPIDEMIC. I made red ribbons for the entire office and pinned it on everyone at work. Than I sent a blast email about my bike ride tomorrow morning and the letter begins with " Do you know anyone who has been affected by HIV/AIDS? The answer is YES YOU DO...YOU KNOW ME!!!! "...

What a clever thing to write in a forum that's public and cached by Google and every other major search engine. Shall I send the subpoena from the feds to your home or work address?

If you'd like. I live in British Columbia. The police really don't care. With the serious drug problems we have here (crack, heroin and meth) marijuana is the least of their problems. You can smoke it openly on the streets and no one will say anything. Also since it isn't going to be broken up into smaller quantities, I couldn't be busted for trafficking. I love lax Canadian pot law. Technically illegal, just like jaywalking...

I JUST CAME OUT AT WORKI'm still not sure how people will react but honestly I don't care! All I care is that they (my co workers) can't say they don't know anyone who has HIV...and that hopefully it will inspire at least one person to join me in the fight against HIV/AIDS.So how did I do it...I am wearing red and a T-SHIRT that reads CHANGE THE COURSE OF THE EPIDEMIC. I made red ribbons for the entire office and pinned it on everyone at work. Than I sent a blast email about my bike ride tomorrow morning and the letter begins with " Do you know anyone who has been affected by HIV/AIDS? The answer is YES YOU DO...YOU KNOW ME!!!! "...

Rich(who is an emotional wreck right now)

Just adding another voice of support (and gratitude) to Rich for what he has done.

If you'd like. I live in British Columbia. The police really don't care. With the serious drug problems we have here (crack, heroin and meth) marijuana is the least of their problems. You can smoke it openly on the streets and no one will say anything. Also since it isn't going to be broken up into smaller quantities, I couldn't be busted for trafficking. I love lax Canadian pot law. Technically illegal, just like jaywalking...

Either as an error or upallnight you just don't have much to offer. Good luck in your future aids decisions.

Either as an error or upallnight you just don't have much to offer. Good luck in your future aids decisions.

Wow! Another jab in internetland. Perhaps my days would be better spent googling the world wide web for news stories on hypocritical republican indiscretions, or creating fake accounts on dating sites to manipulate others into providing me with information that I'd otherwise never have? Those would certainly be great offerings!

I JUST CAME OUT AT WORKI'm still not sure how people will react but honestly I don't care! All I care is that they (my co workers) can't say they don't know anyone who has HIV...and that hopefully it will inspire at least one person to join me in the fight against HIV/AIDS.So how did I do it...I am wearing red and a T-SHIRT that reads CHANGE THE COURSE OF THE EPIDEMIC. I made red ribbons for the entire office and pinned it on everyone at work. Than I sent a blast email about my bike ride tomorrow morning and the letter begins with " Do you know anyone who has been affected by HIV/AIDS? The answer is YES YOU DO...YOU KNOW ME!!!! "...

Rich(who is an emotional wreck right now)

rich youre the greatest, bravest, most totally fab person. i hope your day has been everything you hoped and nothing you feared. if your colleagues have half as much respect for you as we all do here then you'll be their hero.in total respect (and hoping to follow in your footsteps one day)THANK YOUtons of lovexxxx

"I'm not keen on the idea of the afterlife - not without knowing who else will be there and what the entertainment will be. Personally I'd rather just take a rest." Oscar Berger, PWA: Looking AIDS in the Face, 1996. RIP.

I JUST CAME OUT AT WORKI'm still not sure how people will react but honestly I don't care! All I care is that they (my co workers) can't say they don't know anyone who has HIV...and that hopefully it will inspire at least one person to join me in the fight against HIV/AIDS.So how did I do it...I am wearing red and a T-SHIRT that reads CHANGE THE COURSE OF THE EPIDEMIC. I made red ribbons for the entire office and pinned it on everyone at work. Than I sent a blast email about my bike ride tomorrow morning and the letter begins with " Do you know anyone who has been affected by HIV/AIDS? The answer is YES YOU DO...YOU KNOW ME!!!! "...

Rich(who is an emotional wreck right now)

Hey Rich!

You deserve a drum roll for your actions. OOPS, the percussion department is on strike today... Would you settle for some Republican Congress toe tapping? Rat a Tat Tat, Rat a at Tat Tat, Rat a Tat Tat Have the best dayMichael

Tomorrow (friday) I'm doing an interview on the local radio. We talked about postponing it because I'm still a little wobbly after my recent break-up, but we came to a rather interesting compromise.

My argument for postponing was "AIDS isn't just for December first, ya know". Kinda like the "a puppy isn't just for Christmas" thingy. His argument for NOT postponing was "but like it or not, WAD is NOW".

So here's the compromise. I'll do the interview tomorrow and he'll have me back on the show in six months time. I'm gonna hold him to that too.

The interview will start around 11am my time, that's 6am on the East coast, USA. You can listen to it live, or you can listen to it afterwards. Here's the link:

If you want to listen to it live, you can go to the same link and look for the "listen AM" and "listen FM" buttons near the top right-hand side of the page. I'm not entirely sure, but I think you want FM.

Now I've got to get my ass in bed or I'll be talking gobbledegook tomorrow. I've had bad brainfog all day (took me ages to drag the word "compromise" out of my head) and I hope I'm not like that tomorrow too. Otherwise, you'll hear me saying "thingy" and "whatsis" loads of times and I probably won't get asked back next summer.

Ann

i just listened to all 24 minutes of Ann's radio interview on Manx Radio. She was great. It's well worth a listen.

I listened to the link proved in the other thread and agree that I am truly proud to have Ann be a public face for us.

I'm going to also add my awe at someone else here (please hold back the chokes of lovely dovey couple stuff ) but I have to admit that Jeromy truly impressed me greatly on the day...and sort of gave a clear proof to something that was brought up in Ann's interview about being poz and people not even knowing it because they can't visually tell.

What Jeromy did was wear a shirt that said "We all have AIDS" and then went about his business as if it was just another day. Not counting previous discussions about the merit of that particular phrase for HIV and AIDS awareness, what impressed me the most was the symbolism of it all as I just mentioned.

He let the world around us make their own thoughts and decisions of whether he was poz or not (though he would have very easily stated so if asked as he has in the past) and let their own internal or external discussions begin as we shopped in Target for Christmas decorations or a furniture store for a lamp.

A number of people did notice and stopped and stared, and I think it was great for people to realize that someone next to them shopping or going to a movie or just quarreling with their partner (my fault, I admit ) may be positive, and outside of that are not so strange or scary, and in some ways quite the same with their concerns and daily life (per se) that the non-infected have.

We only had one sort of bad encounter...though it really wasn't bad in the end result. We were going to a local store for EVEN MORE DOOR DECORATIONS (sorry...the quarrel of that day seeped through) and we passed this couple. The guy saw Jeromy's shirt and laughed and said "He shirt says we all have AIDS" and without missing a beat, the woman just looked at him and with a certain tone to be relished said "It is WORLD AIDS day."

Based on that expereince, I do have hope that maybe people do get the point.